Thursday, February 3

Dogs are the best ever

Oliver and Daisy had their annual check-ups recently. How are they?
First, Daisy is overweight. This should come as no surprise to most of you who know Daisy the Brute. She's incredibly aggressive over food, though oddly passive and gentle in taking it. The dog, no kidding, emptied a bowl of Cheerios -- and the milk -- without knocking over the bowl or spilling a drop of the milk. She's a master at stealing food at this point. And that, of course, is why the little Lhasa Apso weighs 26 pounds. The vet and I thought last month that we would try to lower Daisy's caloric intake by giving her carrots instead of treats. This is okay, because Daisy loves carrots. Yesterday's weight-check appointment though, brought some unwelcome news: Daisy had gained half a pound. How did this happen? Your guess is as good as mine. Theory: She's eating more food to compensate for the lack of treats. The next step is to find a lower-calorie food, and try to get her to lose some weight that way. It's become a matter of her health at this point, and I won't have my little shark at less than optimum health. I've already found the new food we need to get, so this weekend, the little one -- who's not little at all -- gets some lower-calorie yumminess.
Oliver though, is an entirely different story. My boy weighs exactly what he's supposed to (23 pounds), and at 10 years old, is in perfect health. As a senior, his heartworm blood test also was given the full panel of testing, to ensure that all his organs are working properly, and that he's all good. Well, the word came down today that yes, Oliver is perfect. I definitely could have told them that, but it's always nice to hear. Of course, I'm concerned about him eating the lower-calorie, weight-maintenance food and possibly losing some of the nutrients that his senior-citizen body needs, so his diet will include the senior wet food, too. This will make him very happy. Daisy though, not so much. She'll flip if she sees him getting food that she can't eat, too. So, the art of distraction will be employed.
So, my pooches are good: Oliver's perfect, and Daisy needs to lose weight. I'm putting my big girl on a diet, starting this weekend.

My To-Be-Read Pile

"Grave Ransom," Kalayna Price

"The Map of Time," Felix J. Palma

Obsessed Much? Yes. TV shows I watch:

Archer,Drunk History, Elementary, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, Game of Thrones, The Good Place, Gotham, iZombie, Last Week Tonight, Life in Pieces, Marvel's Agents of SHIELD, Modern Family, The Originals, Preacher, Talking Dead, The Walking Dead

Movies I've seen

The Accountant

Sing

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Mr. Right

Passengers

Books I've Read

"The End of Oz," Danielle Paige

"Yellow Brick War," Danielle Paige

"Prince Lestat and the Realms of Atlantis," Anne Rice

"The Court of Mist and Fury," Sarah Maas

"The Angels' Share," J.R. Ward

Sydney G.

Cooper G.

Elliot G.

Random pet peeves

Head ribbons on babies

Mouth noises

Use of "@" outside of email addresses

Monkey movies

Shaped shrubbery

Dog owners that leave poo

Men who soapbox pro-life

Shingles

Crickets and ants

New York Yankees, Giants

Mosquito bites

"Fifty Shades of Grey"

Put on your quotation devices

"You can never have too many super-duper, super-swell friends."

"Well-behaved women rarely make history."

"As you wish."

"Bird by bird."

"I spin on an axis of my own neuroses."

"When in trouble, when in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout."

"Not the sort of information I retain."

"Keep a watchful eye for ravens."

" ... trying to smell the color 9."

Arbitrary goals and aspirations

Weigh what I've got listed on my driver's license.

Watch the "best" movies and read all the "best" books.

Gain the confidence to wear heels regularly and in everyday life.

Use the statement, made popular by most every movie villain, "You have no idea what I'm capable of."